What Is The Dog’s Brain Size Compared To Humans?

As a proud dog owner myself, I find myself asking random questions about my dog such as the dog’s brain size compared to humans. Dogs are naturally intelligent and have really good senses, but does that mean that they have big brains like humans?

For all those curious passionate dog owners out there, I’ll take a dive into this so that you can get all your questions about the dog’s brain answered.

Dog’s Brain Size Variations

The truth is that not all dogs have the same brain size. Some have bigger brains and some have smaller brains, but that doesn’t mean that the ones with bigger brains are smarter than the ones with smaller brains.

The dog’s brain size depends on the size of the dog’s body. This is where the different types of breeds come into play.

Smaller dogs tend to have brains that seem huge in proportion to their bodies when compared to the brain/body ratio of larger dogs.

Dog’s Brain vs Human Brain

The brain is a powerful tool and can be used for different purposes. Dogs tend to prioritize their brain for their senses function. “They use a much larger portion of their brains for analyzing smells,” says Barrack. “It is also presumed that dogs associate scent with memories, which is why they can be trained to sniff for bombs and drugs.”

The structure of a dog’s brain is quite similar to the human’s brain. We process emotions the same way that dogs process it in their brain. Researchers have also suggested that certain cognitive skills are clumped together, just like in human brains. (For example: if you’re good at math, you’re likely good at problem solving.)

Another thing that is quite similar between human brain and dog brain is that we tend to function on similar nutritional needs. The same type of supplements and minerals that help the human brain can also benefit the dog brain.

Dogs have emotional feelings and can feel sad or happy just like humans can. This is due to the brain having the same function and processes.

Refer to the picture below for an example of the different type of brain shapes and sizes compared to other animals.

Dog’s brain size compared to human’s brain size

A general rule of thumb is that a dog’s brain size is roughly a tenth of the human’s brain size, but again this does not mean that dogs can’t be smarter than humans. The only thing that dogs cant do is communicate with words, but they can use body language as a well to express their emotions.

Proportionally, a dog’s brain assigns 40 percent more space to analyze smells than the human brain does. Dogs have been trained to communicate with humans to use the power of their nose and brain to help detect cancer and drugs, find lost people and warn of bombs.

What is the best brain food for dogs?

Antioxidants are one of the most commonly talked about in human health especially with the elders and anti-aging Researchers have studied the effects of feeding a diet high in antioxidants to older dogs to see if there is an improvement in age-related cognitive dysfunction. Their research actually came back with extremely positive results.

Older dogs that received a diet rich in antioxidants showed improvement in learning and spatial attention within two weeks of starting the enriched diet. This was combined with mental relaxing exercises such as frequent walks and more.

A typical antioxidant-enriched diet for humans contains Vitamin E, vitamin C, L-carnitine, DL-lipoic acid, and fruit and vegetable extracts. A good way to include these in your dog’s diet is by providing your dog with supplements.

Read the article mentioned above for a list of different supplements that you can get for your dog at a budget-friendly price.

Well there you have it folks, the most simple answer to what is the dog’s brain size compared to human. Of course this varies depending on the breed, but the context above should have answered most of the general questions about your dog’s brain.